Harsheel Kothari opened to 160,000 from the cutoff and Alejandro Perez called on the button before Brian Davis three-bet jammed a stack of around 1,350,000 from the small blind. Kothari and Perez both folded to earn Davis the pot.
Shang Dai opened to 160,000 from under the gun and only Masato Yokosawa came along from the big blind.
The flop fanned out Q♣7♣2♠ and Yokosawa check-called a bet of 225,000 from Dai. On the 7♦ turn both players checked their options to the A♦ river, where again action went check-check.
Yokosawa tabled J♠J♣, but was no good when Dai rolled over K♦Q♥ for a pair of queens to take the early pot.
Thomas Clack raised to 160,000 in the hijack and Allen Chang moved all in for 605,000 from the small blind. Clack quickly called and the cards were on their backs.
Allen Chang: A♠J♠
Thomas Clack: 9♥9♦
The flop came J♥J♦8♥ and Chang took a huge lead in the coin flip. The 8♠ on the turn locked up the pot for Chang as he doubled up in just the second hand of the day.
On the first hand of Day 6, Nicholas Rigby raised to 235,000 from early position and was called by Jan-Peter Jachtmann in the cutoff. Luis Yepez, in the big blind, then shoved all in for 590,000, Rigby reshoved, and Jachtmann got out of the way.
Luis Yepez: A♠J♥
Nicholas Rigby: A♦10♦
Yepez got up from his seat and began filming the action as the board ran out 2♦Q♣5♣3♥Q♦. His jack-kicker played to earn him a double up and cut down Rigby's stack right from the start of the day.
Ping Liu three-bet jammed with the A♦10♦ and Hilton Laborda called with the A♥6♠ as the initial raiser.
The 4♣3♣3♦7♠7♥ board ensured a split pot as Liu was denied the double for 690,000.
On a nearby table, Matthew Wantman three-bet to 510,000 in the small blind after Clemen Deng had opened to 170,000 in the cutoff. Deng four-bet jammed and Wantman snap-called for 1,945,000.
Matthew Wantman: J♦J♠
Clemen Deng: 3♥3♦
The 7♦6♦5♠7♣K♣ board brought a sweat via gutshot but Wantman doubled up.
Lorenzo Santos Rodriguez and David Mzareulov were not as fortunate in their all-in showdowns and busted.
There are very few tournaments in the world where players return to the felt for Day 6. There are also very few players who can say they have been a part of a Day 6. For the 149 players returning today, they can say those words as Day 6 has arrived for Event #76: $10,000 WSOP Main Event World Championship at the 2023 World Series of Poker.
Starting to get down to the business end of the tournament, the players can finally see an end in sight in this record-breaking event that is set to play out over the next week. There are three more days of poker until the pinnacle final table of nine players will be set to battle out for poker's greatest fame. The winner will be able to walk home with the Main Event's largest sum ever of $12,100,000.
Leading the way after a wildly successful Day 5 is Zachary Hall with 16,310,000 chips, a clear leader over the rest of his competition. Hall made his WSOP debut back in 2011 where he also made his one and only final table, finishing in seventh place. However, making a final table this week in poker's biggest event will bring much bigger rewards and something Hall is certainly looking forward to.
Other big stacks heading into Day 6 include Bryan Obregon (12,295,000), Liran Betito (11,140,000), and Andrew Hulme (11,065,000) as the only other players with eight-figure stacks in the Main Event.
Although many fan favorites hit the rail on Day 5, including the likes of previous champions Chris Moneymaker and Joe Hachem, there are still a few household names still in contention. YouTube sensation Masato Yokosawa (6,740,000), poker commentator Tony Dunst (8,285,000), and Nicholas Rigby (1,650,00) will have more to say as the day unfolds.
Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank
Name
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Zachary Hall
United States
16,310,000
204
2
Bryan Obregon
United States
12,295,000
154
3
Liran Betito
Israel
11,140,000
139
4
Andrew Hulme
United Kingdom
11,065,000
138
5
Joshua Payne
United States
9,850,000
123
6
Anirban Das
India
9,230,000
115
7
Tony Dunst
United States
8,285,000
104
8
Glenn Fishbein
United States
8,265,000
103
9
Jonathan Therme
France
7,900,000
99
10
Jack O'Neill
United Kingdom
7,735,000
97
There are two women among the remaining players in the field and each of them has the potential as much as any other to reach the pinnacle of the game. Nikita Luther (4,380,000) and Estelle Cohuet (3,380,000) have battled through the opening five days and positioned themselves for a deep run. Gaelle Baumann from France was the last woman to make the "unofficial" final table, finishing 10th, but these two ladies will hope to change that this year.
The schedule for today will be the same as all of the others with another five 120-minute levels on tap. A 20-minute break will take place after every level along with a 75-minute dinner break after the third level of the day. Players will be returning to Level 26 with the blinds at 40,000/80,000 and an 80,000 big blind ante. Each player has already locked up at least $67,700, but the pay jumps will soon start to become more significant.
As always, the PokerNews team will be on the tournament floor to bring you all of the LIVE updates. If you want to know what is happening in real-time, keep it tuned in here for all of the excitement!